Global Plastic Waste Report

Dhruvin Modh, Sandhya Erland Chandrasekar, Xinyu Wang

Problem Introduction

  • Plastic waste is a growing threat to both land and marine ecosystems.
  • Many countries generate high levels of plastic but lack efficient recycling systems.
  • Coastal regions are especially vulnerable to plastic leakage into oceans.
  • We aim to identify key risk factors and regional disparities in plastic waste patterns.

Dataset Description

Dataset: Plastic Waste Around the World

Coverage: - This dataset includes data for 165 individual countries

Key Variables:

  • Total plastic waste generated (in metric tonnes)

  • Per capita plastic waste (in kilograms)

  • National recycling rate (in percentage)

  • Coastal plastic waste risk level

Source: The dataset is retrieved from a publicly available GitHub repository called Pranu580 that compiles plastic waste statistics from multiple global environmental datasets.

Methods

  • Data cleaning with janitor, filtering missing values
  • Binned recycling rate into Low, Medium, High (using quantiles)
  • Derived population estimates and waste-per-person metrics
  • Grouped by coastal risk and recycling category

Top 10 Countries by Per Capita Waste

Figure Shown: Horizontal bar chart

  • Countries: Iceland, Malta, Cyprus, Palau, etc.
  • High per capita waste in tourist-heavy nations
  • Color-coded by recycling category (green, orange, red)

Waste vs. Recycling Rate

Figure Shown: Horizontal bar chart

  • Scatter plot with linear trend line
  • Weak inverse relationship: more waste often correlates with lower recycling
  • Key insight: High waste ≠ High recycling

Results

Table 1: Plastic Waste Indicators by Coastal Risk Level
coastal_waste_risk Per_Capita Total_Capita SD(Total) Mean Recycling(%)
Very_High 33.67 2.51 2.45 9.85
High 89.67 1.69 7.44 5.50
Medium 163.46 2.94 7.24 19.78
Low 148.29 0.97 1.30 19.66

As shown in Table 1, countries with different coastal risk levels show distinct patterns in plastic waste generation and management.

  • Very High risk countries generate low plastic waste per person but large total amounts, likely due to high population density.

  • High risk countries struggle with low recycling rates and inconsistent waste control across regions.

  • Medium risk countries show high plastic use both individually and overall, suggesting strong consumption pressure.

  • Low risk countries produce less total waste and maintain more stable, efficient recycling systems.

These results suggest that coastal plastic waste risk is shaped not only by how much plastic people use, but also by tourism-driven consumption, population concentration, and waste system effectiveness.

Conclusion & Recommendations

  • Tourism impact: In island countries, high waste per person often comes from tourists, not poor systems. For example, in the Maldives, tourists make 5 times more waste than locals.Prepare for busy seasons; use eco-fees and make sure hotels sort waste properly.

  • Population density: Crowded places make a lot of total waste, even if each person only makes a little. Weak waste systems can’t handle it well.Spend money on better waste collection (like mobile bins), not just recycling.

  • Control variation: Waste rules are very different in Medium and High risk countries. Low risk countries usually have steady and efficient systems.Help High risk countries improve, and share good ideas from Low risk countries.